Singer Ayumi Hamasaki's new single "Rule / Sparkle" took the top spot in the Oricon weekly singles ranking with sales of 95,000. This makes it her 20th consecutive #1 single (32nd total), starting with "Free & Easy" in 2002. Hamasaki is the first solo artist and the first female artist to achieve 20 consecutive number ones.

New band flumpool picked up #2 with their third release. abingdon boys school, Kazumasa Oda, Dreams Come True, Yui Aragaki, Ai Otsuka, and Shonannokaze also made the top ten with their new songs.

In other Oricon ranking news, Angela Aki's third album, "ANSWER," took the #1 spot in the album charts, selling a total of 74,000 copies in its first week. This is her 2nd consecutive chart-topper.

Meanwhile, J Soul Brothers came in at #2 with their self-titled album at 69,000 in sales. It was just announced earlier this week that the group is merging with EXILE, making this album their first and last.

The only other new Japanese albums in the top ten were both from Tomoko Kawase - her best collections for Tommy february6 and Tommy heavenly6 ranked #5 and #6, respectively.